Ancient Rome Notes

Ancient Rome

Geography

  • Rome within Italy

  • Italy within Mediterranean 

  • Mediterranean within Europe

  • Fewer mountains

    • The Alps to the north

    • Apennines in the middle

  • Good farmland

  • Several rivers

  • Advantages/significance of location

    • Protection (mountains)

    • Access to water (rivers)

    • Farmland



The Roman Republic

  • Government with non-king leader

    • Some citizens have the right to vote

  • Two groups of Romans:

    • Patricians (wealthy, fewer)

    • Plebeians (poorer, more)

  • Two chief officers in Early Rome

    • Consul (2, led govt and military

    • Praetor (1, in charge of civil law)

  • Legislative bodies

    • Senate (300 Patricians, serve for life)

    • Centuriate Assembly (elect officials, pass laws, mostly wealthy)

    • Council of Plebs (not until later)

  • Dictator = good? (initially)

    • Emergency, temporary

    • Returns power after conflict is settled



The Twelve Tables

  • Significant because establishes crime ---> punishment

  • First Roman government law system

  • Printed on 12 tablets, placed in Forum

  • Similar concepts to U.S.

    • Trials, property, ownership, etc.

  • For farming, rural, small society

  • Later a civil law (as Rome grows)

  • Then a natural law (reason)

    • Innocent until proven guilty

    • Impartial judge

    • Comparable to American Revolution, John Locke




  • Both Rome and U.S. had elections, parts of government (senate, assembly, etc)

  • Both had legal code

  • Rome citizen: all adult male landowners

  • U.S. citizen: all native born or naturalized adults



Roman Military

  • Rome was protected by an advanced army that was divided into groups of 5,000 soldiers called legions

    • Each legion was divided into smaller groups of 80 men called centuries

  • When conquered territory, let things be but introduce Roman things (govt, roads, etc)

    • Have to pay taxes

    • Have to participate in military



Roman Expansion: Punic Wars

  • Rome vs. Carthage

  • Three wars (each ~20 years long, except #3)

  • Rome wins all, destroys Carthage

    • Put salt on farmland to make dirt infertile

  • Rome becomes dominant in Mediterranean 


Augustus

  • Dies AD 14

  • Created new order but retained traditional values

Julio-Claudian Emperors

  • Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, Nero (don’t need to know names, just that they were bad)

    • Young

  • Took more and more responsibilities that Augustus had given the Senate

  • Corrupt

  • Greedy

Period of Civil War

  • Lasted about 30 years

    • There were emperors during this time, but constant fighting

  • Followed by Pax Romana period and the Five Good Emperors 

    • Pax Romana = Roman peace

Pax Romana

  • AD 96 - AD 180

    • 200 years

  • Five good emperors (not all at same time)

    • Capable

    • Expanded emperor’s power

    • Public works

  • Height of Roman empire

    • Added territory through conquest

    • Population: Roman citizenship expanded to more people, allowed to keep traditions

      • Conquered peoples are free to be themselves w/ protection, not slaves, as long as no revolt/pay taxes

    • Territory challenges w/ large empire?

      • Communication is difficult

      • Military must be powerful

Economy

  • Trade/agriculture

Society

  • Latifundia: large land estates owned by Patricians

  • Growing gap between rich and poor

Roman Art/Literature

  • Very Greek-inspired

    • Took Greek gods and renamed them

  • Art

    • Greco-Roman

    • Real, not ideal

  • Architecture

    • Continued columns, rectangle buildings

    • New: arches, vault, dome, concrete

    • All roads lead to Rome

      • Many roads were built

  • Literature

    • Aeneid by Virgil

      • Taught duty and faithfulness to Rome

    • The Early History of Rome by Livy

      • Focused on moral lessons that created a great Rome


The First Christians

  • Rome allowed people to be themselves as long as they followed Rome’s religion (mythology) and paid taxes

    • Rome is polytheistic, believed emperors were divine

    • Christianity is monotheistic

    • Rome took offense

  • Movement with Judaism

    • Monotheistic

    • Judea controlled by Rome

    • Jews allowed to worship freely

      • Punished when revolt

      • Jewish captives built the Colosseum

  • Basic teachings of Christianity

    • One god

    • Jesus is the messiah, or anointed one

    • Jesus died on the cross to save humanity from their sins

    • 10 commandments

      • 1: love god

      • 2: love your neighbor as yourself

    • Have faith

    • Believe in Jesus as the savior and follow god’s word

  • Christians were persecuted by Romans

    • Created underground churches to pray in safety

  • Differences:

    • Christianity:

      • Monotheistic

      • Refused to worship Roman gods, including the emperor

      • Jesus was crucified for fear of causing revolt against Rome

        • Rome might fall if this happened

    • Rome:

      • Polytheistic

      • Tolerant of other religions

      • Expected ALL to celebrate Roman rituals and gods

      • Emperor is a god and should be worshipped as such

  • Spread of Christianity

    • After Jesus’ death (and Christian belief of resurrection and ascension)

    • Things were written in Greek, causing widespread expansion as Greek was a common language

    • Disciples put to death

      • Except for John

    • Paul

      • Spread message of Jesus as savior and son of god

      • Founded Christian communities in Asia Minor

      • Wrote letters outlining Christian beliefs

  • Why was it so popular?

    • Religion was personal

      • Allowed personal salvation and eternal life to individuals

    • Seemed familiar; Jesus was a human figure

    • Fulfilled the human need to belong within communities

      • Love and services for all

    • Open to ALL classes

      • Promise of eternal life after death

      • Very popular w/ the poor

  • Edict of Milan

    • 313 AD

    • Christianity is officially tolerated in Rome

    • Thanks to Constantine





Decline and Fall of Rome

  • What factors led to the decline of Rome?

  • How did reforms by Diocletian and constantine affect the roman empire?

  • What were the consequences of Rome’s collapse?

  • Problems

    • Christianity

      • Caused conflict within

      • Conflicting messages, influencing people to turn their backs on Rome’s views

    • Too big, too quick

      • Expansion was too rapid

      • Communication took too long

      • Hard to defend

    • Corrupt rulers

      • Caligula, Nero, etc

      • When a corrupt person has total power ---> uh oh for society

    • Money problems

      • Debt

        • Borrowed a lot of money ---> inflation

      • Inflation

      • Taxes

        • Trying to tax far-out places in the empire was difficult

    • Slavery-heavy

      • Rome failed to advance technologically due to slavery

      • Too reliant on slavery

      • Slaves rebelled

        • Spartacus, for example

    • Military heavy

    • Foreigner heavy

      • Different beliefs

      • No one cares about Rome as a whole anymore

    • Civil war

    • Tribal invasions

    • Plague (not Bubonic/Black Plague)

  • Improvements? (too late)

    • Diocletian

      • Divides empire into 4

        • East + West, 2 parts each

      • Increases army and ‘bureaucracy’

        • Need more tax money; increased inflation

      • Price Edict set wage and price controls

      • Vocation Edicts kept workers in their vocation

    • Constantine

      • Built Constantinople (now Istanbul)

      • Continues army + bureaucracy increase

        • (more government officials)

      • Edict of Milan

      • Worked to make Christianity official (unofficial) religion of Rome

  • Effects

    • (west) Rome falls

    • Byzantine Empire stays around! (until 1400s)

      • Eastern Roman empire

    • No strong, unifying power in West Europe

    • Catholic(universal) Church power/influence increases

    • Age of Feudalism

    • Charlemagne (father of modern Europe)

    • Leads to the Dark Ages (Middle Ages)



Byzantine Empire

  • West Rome falls

    • 476 A.D.

    • Church took power

  • Eastern Rome remains

    • Byzantine Empire

      • Capital: Constantinople

    • Remains until 1453 A.D.

      • Captured by Ottoman Turks

  • Justinian

    • Most famous Byzantine emperor

    • The Body of Civil Law

      • Basis for European legal system

      • Regulated business

    • Hagia Sophia

      • “Church of the Holy Wisdom”

      • Big, fancy church building

    • Responsible for rebuilding Constantinople

  • Eastern Orthodox Church

    • Split in Christianity

    • Head of church: patriarch

      • Appointed by emperor

    • MAJOR difference from Roman Catholic Church

      • Said pope (in Rome) was NOT the #1 head of Christianity

      • Leads to a split (schism) between West and East

        • Occurs in 1054 A.D.

  • Economy

    • Constantinople

      • Location, location, location!

        • Trade

        • Visitors

      • Silk trade

      • Justinian had silk worms ---> $$$

      • Infrastructure & public services

        • Churches, bridges, roads

        • Sewers, hospitals, parks